A nighttime perspective of First Friday

Words and photos by Lauren Moylan and Nadine Gillespie

Additional photo credits William Knight, www.wkphotog.com

Every first Friday of the month downtown welcomes the community to engage in one of the most creative and lively events, opening the doors of numerous art galleries, museums and studios for the viewing public.  This event offers an opportunity to experience the artistic and cultural resources used to innovate and create in the Honolulu area.

This past First Friday Festival just so happened to land on the Chinese New Year celebration, adding to the excitement and creating a lively and festive environment for people of all ages and races.  As my friend Nadine and I explored the busy streets of Chinatown in the latter part of the evening, we were able to get a good glimpse of the First Friday nightlife and immersed ourselves in the culture as well.

At the start of our journey we first stumbled upon the Chinese New Year parade, where people were setting off firecrackers to void off evil spirits as well as offering red money envelopes to dancing lions who caught the attention of all of those around with their intense energy, brightly colored costumes, and glowing eyes.  The annual Chinese New Year parade along with the fireworks and music performances turned the streets of downtown into an entirely unique and creative environment, almost like being an art piece in itself, as many people were taking pictures of the street covered in debris and people celebrating the start of a new year.

Mercury Bar: before the flood of people.

As the parade came to a close, we found ourselves popping in and out of different art galleries and spent most of our time at the well-known ARTS at Marks Garage.  People crowded around the outside of this gallery to watch a handful of UH art students draw portraits of people for donations to help the UH ARTS Program.

As we observed artists and the local innovations and art pieces inside, we stumbled upon my good friend Tim who has a passion for all types of art and decided to get our portrait done by him.  As Nadine and I attempted to stand as still as possible for fifteen minutes, we spoke with Tim about the UH art department, discovering their need for new models for the program as well as raising money for the program itself.  Nodding his head to the upbeat music playing in the background, he spoke with us about his aspirations as an artist and his creative process that consists of listening to his favorite tunes in a calm and quiet environment at night.

When our portrait was done we hugged him goodbye and explored the rest of the gallery, taking photos and observing other artists who were drawing models in hot-pink Speedos and torn-up loincloths.  It was interesting to see how each artist’s perspective of the model was different and how they each portrayed the models in their own way.

With the art galleries beginning to close and more people arriving to Chinatown in their best nightclubbing attire, Nadine and I headed to the Mercury Bar, where I work every First Friday for the monthly event Subphonix, hosted by Pacific Jungle Management.  Being the promotions manager and door girl for this event, I brought Nadine as my guest and we explored the well-hidden dive bar, engaging in conversations with other local talents and listening to the sounds of intelligent local DJs and producers.  As the bar began to fill, DJ Saya (creator of Pacific Jungle Management) turned up the heat with uplifting, soulful drum and bass, setting the mood for an eventful evening.

For Chinese New Year, Pacific Jungle decided to bring in Liz Immel, a local artist and fire spinner who performed live body paintings throughout the night, as well as spinning fire in the well hidden alley right outside Mercury Bar.  Setting a bar record that night for attendance, Mercury Bar was a success, filled with some of the most creative and innovative musicians and artists in Honolulu.  Special guest DJ Grym from Seattle ended the evening with a mind-blowing set of drum and bass, sharing his creative techniques with the local music lovers of Hawai‘i and leaving them wanting more.

So if you haven’t been to a First Friday and have a love for local musical talent and art, we encourage you all to check out this monthly event or to even become a part of it by submitting your own unique creations and sharing your innovations with your community.